Samuel A. Rosado

February 16, 2012 | Politics

On Chimichangas and Double Standards

A firestorm was created yesterday when Dana Milbank, a columnist for the Washington Post, wrote an article delightfully announcing that Republicans have all but destroyed any chances of winning the Hispanic vote. In response to statement by McCain positing that the chimichanga was invented in Arizona, Milbank ends his article with:

“The chimichanga? It may be the only thing Republicans have left to offer Latinos.”

So clever, am I right? Well Jim Messina, President Obama’s Campaign Manager, tweeted the ‘joke’ as the “Line of the Day:”

There are plenty of things to say about Messina’s decision to endorse the joke. Let’s take a look at the joke itself …

As I already said to Messina himself via twitter, I think it’s generally offensive to assume that all Hispanics enjoy chimichangas. As a Puerto Rican, I didn’t know what a chimichanga was until I moved to San Antonio as a child. It’s primarily a Tex-Mex dish, yet GASP!, “Hispanic” means more than just Mexicans from the Southwest. I know I shouldn’t have to spell it out for Milbank and Messina I feel like I have no other choice. It’s startlingly ignorant to assume that all Hispanics are culturally similar, which is what the joke implies.

For Jim Messina, as Campaign Manager, to give his virtual thumbs up to the joke shows he’s out of touch with the Hispanic community and the diversity of culture it encompasses. It also smacks of arrogance that he thinks he can get away with supporting jokes like this because he believes the Democrats have the Hispanic vote locked. Considering the unemployment rate for Hispanics is at 10.5%, and a record number of Hispanic children are now in poverty as a result of President Obama’s economic policies (or lack thereof), I don’t think he has much of a leg to stand on.

Hispanics, like everyone else in this country, care about jobs, the economy, and their children’s education. And the first two are now eclipsing immigration among Hispanic voters. Obama has improved none of the above for Hispanics. Messina’s overconfidence is his weakness, and if he thinks Hispanics are going to monolithically pull the lever for Obama, he’s wrong.

Even going past the general offensive nature of the joke, I’m surprised the incident got as much press as it did. Time and time again, Democratic politicians and pundits who make an equally or more offensive ethnic/racial/religious comment largely get a pass or at worse, a slap on the wrist by the media and interest groups (the one recent exception being liberal pundit Roland Martin, who was suspended from CNN after making an “anti-gay” joke during the Super Bowl). Need I list the number of gaffes made by our Vice President Joe Biden? He’s made so many, and the media are so soft on Democrats, that they seem to have the attitude of “oh, that silly Joe Biden,” essentially dismissing whatever latest ethnic joke/stereotype comes out of his mouth. I highly doubt that would EVER happen for a Republican politician. For the GOP, it’s one strike and you’re out.

In the grand scheme of things, Milbank could’ve said worse and I’ve heard plenty worse. And Republican politicians have made similar dumb and offensive comments themselves. But that’s not the point. Myself and a lot of other conservatives and Republicans are tired of the double standard in place and are now simply applying the same level of scrutiny the media places on Republican politicians. Instead of trying to pass the buck, both Jim Messina and Dana Milbank should apologize for perpetuating stereotypes. Before Jim Messina charges in guns blazing on yet another soon-to-be-mocked Obama Campaign iteration of “Fight the Smears,” perhaps he should reflect upon the discourse he’s engaging in himself.

Samuel A. Rosado, Esq. is a writer for Politic365. He received his degree in Political Science at the University of Texas at Dallas and graduated from Roger Williams University School of Law in 2010. He brings a conservative perspective to issues facing Hispanics and strives to be at the forefront of outreach efforts in the growing community. When he is not writing for Politic365, he works as an associate attorney for a small law firm in New Jersey.